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Does the degradation of polylactic acid fibers require specific temperature and humidity conditions
source：www.kingcharmgroup.com | Release time：2026-09-211. Industrial composting environment (meets OK Compost and GB/T 28206 standards)
It is required to maintain a stable temperature of 58-70 ℃, an environmental relative humidity of ≥ 55%, and the compost substrate should contain a large number of microorganisms and sufficient oxygen. High temperature will accelerate the attack of water molecules on the ester bonds of polyester macromolecules, causing the long chains of the polymer to break and the molecular weight to rapidly decrease; Water is an essential reactant in hydrolysis reactions. In this environment, polylactic acid fibers can generally complete disintegration and biotransformation into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass within 6 months. When the temperature is below 55 ℃, the degradation rate will significantly increase.
2. Normal temperature soil environment (20-25 ℃)
Even if there are microorganisms in the soil, the hydrolysis rate at room temperature is very low. If the soil remains moist, fibers will slowly hydrolyze, often taking several years to show significant brittleness and fragmentation; If the soil is dry, degradation will basically stop. Many people mistakenly believe that burying soil can quickly degrade, but in fact, ordinary outdoor soil cannot meet the high temperature conditions of industrial composting and can only slowly age without completely disappearing in the short term.
3. Seawater environment
The temperature in seawater at room temperature is low, and even with water, the hydrolysis reaction is slow. Polylactic acid fibers in low-temperature seawater can maintain their mechanical strength for several years and only slowly hydrolyze; Only in tropical high-temperature waters, the degradation rate will slightly increase, but it is still far behind industrial composting. The degradation of seawater does not belong to the scenario of rapid biodegradation.
4. Dry environment
No matter the temperature, as long as the environment is dry and lacks moisture, ester bond hydrolysis is difficult to occur. Under normal temperature and dry storage conditions, as well as in dry atmospheric environments, polylactic acid fibers can be stored stably for a long time without degradation, which is also the basis for the normal storage and transportation of PLA fiber products.
5. High temperature and dry environment
Only high temperature and insufficient humidity will result in no significant biodegradation, only thermal aging, yellowing, and mechanical decay, which is not biological degradation in the sense of the word.
6. Additional influencing factors
Alternating wet dry environment: Repeated water absorption drying can accelerate hydrolysis aging, rapidly reduce fiber strength, and easily pulverize, but it may not be completely digested by microorganisms.
PH value: Acidic and alkaline environments can catalyze hydrolysis, and degradation is further accelerated when combined with appropriate temperature and humidity.
Fiber structure: The higher the crystallinity of the fiber, the more difficult it is for water molecules to penetrate, and the slower the decrease in temperature and humidity. The degradation cycle of high crystalline PLA fibers is longer.
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